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Have you ever been to a good convention or conference where you learned a ton of useful stuff? (Photoshop World ? in Las Vegas was one for me. Highly recommended if you’re into digital photography.) If you go buck wild for beauty, as I’m guessing you probably do (*ahem*, like moi), mark your calendar for March 21-23 because The Makeup Show, which takes place in different U.S. cities every year, is hosting a new three-day beauty pro/peep/lover (it’s open to everyone, but the tickets are pricey) educational program there called .

You could elevate your makeup artistry skills, learn about the beauty biz, and marketing, and photography. Also, of course, you could network, meet with others beauty lovers, and people who work in the biz.

Each day focuses on different topics, like the artistry side, photography or brand building, and the classes will be taught by beauty professionals.

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Space is limited, so if you’re interested and will be out here in the Bay Area, .

FYI, the tickets are pricey (the early-bird price for one day is $650!), but that also includes access to on March 24-25, where there are other workshops and a huge exhibit hall, and you can get discounts on beauty products from Make Up For Ever, NYX, Viseart and more.

I’ve heard so much about The Makeup Show over the years, and I’ve never been to one before, but this may be the year. It seems like it would be silly of me to not go on a year when it’s in the Bay Area.

Um…I wish I was saying hello to you from Tokyo. Instead, I’m waving to you over the interwebz from my cluttered hallway while holding this Shiseido Hello Toyko tote.

The cute characters in the print remind me of those gummy candies at the Asian store.

Ooh! — what if the tote came with peach gummy rings!? That would be awesome.

It’s an , and you get it, along with a skin care sampler set with extra big sample sizes, with any $75 purchase (excluding gift sets).

There are four skin care sets to choose from, too (but only the one tote). There’s one set for fine lines, another for brightening, one for fading dark spots, and a set for clear skin.

Cute!

Most of Shiseido’s products are available on their website, so there’s a lot to choose from. One thing I use and love is their Ibuki Quick Fix Mist ($25). It’s a setting spray to keep greasy skin in check.

I know — kind of a funky title, but it gets straight to the point…which is cats, coffee and cosmetics, three of my favorite things.

This has actually been in the works for two years, and it’s been really hard to keep it under wraps, but the investors finally came through, and we secured the perfect space. All that’s left now is to finish construction, hire the resident kitties (pending Tabs’s approval, of course), and bring onboard a talented cat-loving makeup artist to do makeovers (yes, we’ll even have makeovers!), but that’s down the road a little.

If you live in the Bay Area, I’d love for you to stop by when we open. We’ll be serving coffee drinks, selling cat-themed makeup (hello, Paul & Joe cuteness), and you’ll be able to make a reservation to hang out with our adoptable cafe kitties in Kitty Village, our special play area.

We’re hoping to house 15 adoptable kitties at a time, but who knows? If the idea takes off, we may open other franchises around the Bay Area, or heck — across the United States and around the world!

We’re located in downtown Novato by the Trader Joe’s, and the grand opening will be in early June.

We’re taking reservations now for the first two weeks. If you’re in the Bay Area and would like to be one of the very first guests, leave a comment below, and I’ll get in touch with you to schedule a date and time to meet the kitties.

Lattes and mochas for everyone! 🙂

I’ll be posting pics of the space as the construction progresses, and when we get the adoptable kitties lined up, I’ll be posting pics of them here as well.

Prepare your eyes (which I’m sure are lined purr-fectly with Blacktrack) and your makeup-loving heart for a feast of Monday MAC marvelousness, my friend, because that’s when I hear the new MAC website will launch.

I gotta warm up my shopping muscles! — but let’s keep that between us. El Hub does not need to know that I’m eyeing MOAR LIPSTICKS. 🙂

Tabs has so far been unable to capture the attention of the good human and feline curators at , the largest curator of cat pics on Instagram, but he hopes to change that soon…

He’s been prepping his portfolio of pics that he believes could go toe-to-toe with the pics that’ll be on display this Saturday, June 14, in San Francisco’s Union Square at the Purina Pro Plan Pop-Up Photo Gallery, a free event from 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. in the city ().

Purina enlisted the help of up-and-coming pet photographer Jessica Trinh to help define, in photographic format, “what’s so great about cats,” and to inspire cat owners pet assistants everywhere to recognize and share the things that make their cats great.

Jessica was invited into the homes of 10 cat owners to chronicle their stories through photography, and the photos, along with cat pics collected through a partnership with Cats of Instagram, will be displayed at the gallery in Union Square.

If you like cats, stop by! 🙂

19-Year-Old Pet Photographer Jessica Trinh works to answer the eternal question, “What’s so great about cats?” in picture format

By Jessica TrinhBy Jessica Trinh

ME the Purina Pro Plan #MyGreatCat campaign
wants you to share what you love about your cat on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. For every photo or video shared that uses the hashtag #MyGreatCat, the brand will donate 1 pound of cat food — up to 50,000 pounds — to cat rescue groups nationwide through the Purina Pro Plan Rally to Rescue network.